GPS Roll-over Bug

Starting April 6, 2019, a global GPS time reset issue, dubbed GPS Week Rollover, may impact location accuracy when making a 911 call from a mobile device.

As a result of the GPS rollover, a small percentage of TELUS customers using select mobile devices may not have accurate GPS location readings in the event of a 911 emergency (see below for a list of affected devices). More specifically, when customers using the affected mobile devices make a 911 call, Emergency Services will receive the call, however, they may not have the ability to detect the customers’ exact GPS location coordinates.

Please note that this is a global issue and not isolated to TELUS.

What TELUS is Doing

TELUS is working with manufacturers to roll out fixes to affected devices as soon as possible. However, some devices will not receive software patches for the foreseeable future.

Our customers’ safety is an absolute priority and we will advise impacted TELUS customers via SMS in advance of April 6th, to make them aware of the following:

If a customer is making a 911 call using one of the impacted devices, we suggest that they exercise caution and provide Emergency Services with their location details.

Download software patch as soon as possible for devices with an available software update

For customers with a device without a known software patch, we are advising them to be aware of this issue and exercise caution if they find themselves in a 911 situation, including sharing their specific location with emergency services.

Affected Devices

TELUS has identified a small number of select devices that, as of April 6th, 2019, will no longer provide accurate location functionality. These devices may, however, obtain some location functionality through wireless tower triangulation so Emergency Services may continue to get locations for these customers. TELUS will communicate to all impacted customers to make them aware of this issue and encourage them to download the applicable software patch to their devices to resolve this issue.

TELUS has worked with manufacturers to roll out fixes to affected devices. If your device is listed below, please update your devices to the latest software.

Alcatel A50 (5085O)

Alcatel 1 (5033O)

Alcatel Lume (A466T)

Alcatel Pixi 3(4) (A460T)

Some devices, however, will not receive software patches due to their age. If your device is listed below, please be aware of this issue and exercise caution if you find yourself in a 911 situation. Alternatively, you can visit your nearest TELUS store to purchase a new device.